As the Committee of Supply Debate continues today, the
Ministry of Health (MOH) has announced a number of initiatives aimed at boosting the healthcare sector’s labour capabilities and improving the health of older workers in other industries.
From 2011 to 2015, the national healthcare workforce grew by 24% from 46,000 to 57,000, Minister for Health Gan Kim Yong said.
To cater for further growth, the MOH is stepping up its efforts to attract even more workers to the healthcare industry including fresh graduates and mid-career professionals.
This includes the creation of the $5,000 Healthcare SkillsFuture Study Awards to support skills upgrading of those already in the sector, said Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Health.
In a move that makes the industry even more attractive, the Minister said that all healthcare clusters in Singapore currently offer flexible work arrangements.
The MOH together with the Ministry of Education has launched the National Silver Academy, a network of institutions and voluntary welfare organisations, which offers courses to those aged 50 and above.
The Academy will provide 10,000 learning places in 500 courses in this year alone. These are designed to teach new skills to older workers and include an Intergenerational Learning Programme where older students are paired up with younger mentors.
The Academy will put older workers in the same classrooms as ITE, polytechnic and university students with the aim of teaching them new skills – some of which may be useful in today’s workplaces.
Finally, MOH plans on offering workplace health programs to 120,000 older workers in seven sectors by 2025.
More details about these initiatives should be released sometime in the near future.
